January 27, 2008

John McCain asked about Juan Hernandez, doesn't denounce his views

Via this, someone went to a John McCain appearance in Florida and asked him about his Hispanic outreach director Juan Hernandez, a dual citizen who's also a former official with the Mexican government. While she got some good information about him out there in her question, she didn't note that he's a former official with the Mexican government.

Here's McCain's reply:

He's on my staff because he supports my policies and my proposals and my legislative proposal to secure the borders first. [...] I don't know what his previous positions are or other positions are, he supports mine. I have nothing to do with his. He has volunteered to help me with outreach to our Hispanic citizenry as I outreach to every citizen in America. [...] I have no idea but I will check in to the information you've given me. [...]

According to a McCain spokesman, he was just an unpaid volunteer. However, McCain himself says he's on his staff, and there would seem to be a conflict between their descriptions of his roles. McCain also claims to be clueless about Hernandez' previous positions, something that's difficult to believe considering that Hernandez is a Senior Fellow at the McCain-linked "Reform Institute". But, if he isn't lying, that indicates a strong lack of judgment. And, I doubt whether McCain's attempts to disclaim responsibility for the opinions of a member of his staff would wash if that person held opinions that the MSM considered out of bounds.

The thing to do now is for others to hound him at future appearances, pointing out that Hernandez used to work for a foreign government that encourages illegal immigration to the U.S. and that he's now "outreaching" to U.S. citizens and voters on McCain's behalf. And, ask him whether he's had a chance to check in to Hernandez' positions, why he wasn't aware of them before, and whether he's going to request that Hernandez leaves his "staff". The MSM can also be asked why they aren't looking in to this, such as by asking them in person (noting their names) or by posting comments at MSM sites that discuss McCain.

Posted to Immigration2008a at January 27, 2008 10:03 PM